It's that time of year again. Who will be New Hampshire's 2015 Shakespearian Idol? YOU decide!

Step out with Advice To The Players (ATTP), New Hampshire's award-winning Shakespeare company, for the granite state's latest talent competition. Join our live panel of judges – Genevieve Aichele, Ken Martin, and Paul Mroczka, – all stars of the NH Theatre scene – and cast your vote for the night's best act of Shakespeare-and-song.

Ever see Romeo and Juliet break into “Bad Romance” on the balcony? Ever wish King Lear would let loose with “Stormy Weather?” Who knows what creative combinations you'll see at our one-night benefit gala! Native New Hampshire theatre veterans and newbies alike – perhaps even your neighbors – will take to the stage at the historic Barnstormers Theatre in Tamworth. Cheer on the brave contestants as they battle for the title of Shakespearian Idol, led by Master of Ceremonies, George Cleveland.

Join the fun, cast your votes, and enjoy some refreshments all while supporting award-winning Shakespeare performances and education programs – only at Advice To The Players' fourth annual Shakespearian Idol!

The 105th Grand Street Parade steps off at 1:00 PM on Sunday, October 11. The theme of the Parade this year is Early American Transportation. Viewing the parade is not only fun, but easy, as you can watch it along its route as you stroll through the historic village of Center Sandwich, or as it continues on its way through the Fairgrounds. Complete with bands, animals, fire engines, and floats, the Grand Street Parade is not to be missed this year! There are several new and exciting features scheduled to be included in the Parade this year, all having to do with Early American Transportation. Sandwich’s own beautiful Concord Coach, built in 1850 and still in use, will be drawn by two Percheron horses with Bruce Locke at the reigns, and transporting the Arthur Heard family. While you are enjoying the Fair be sure to make your way to a viewing spot along the Parade’s route. See you Sunday afternoon at the Grand Street Parade!

Please enjoy the photos below of the Sandwich Coach in Sandwich Fair parades of years past. Click on individual photos for a better view.

Fairgoers should have a wonderful weekend with lots to do; but you don’t have to be just a spectator. Have you made a quilt, a hooked rug, a basket. a piece of art or other fine craft? Perhaps you made some amazing preserves, or the best maple syrup ever? What about a great photo Do you have a baked good recipe that you thing might be a blue ribbon winner? What about decorating a cake? Do you have the biggest zucchini ever or a giant pumpkin? Maybe you have some uniquely shaped vegetables that would be perfect for the vegetable art competition. Well if you think you have something worth sharing and showing off, you can still enter it in the Sandwich Fair.

To enter an item into one of the contests in the exhibit halls, go to www.thesandwichfair.com and download an entry form. Complete one form for each department you enter (rules and regulations are in the Exhibitors Handbook and on the website). Bring your form and item(s) to the Hodge Building on the Sandwich Fairgrounds between 3 and 8 pm on Friday evening, October 9. There will be a table in the middle of the Hodge Building where you can have an exhibitor number assigned and the volunteers will direct you to the appropriate department chairs who will make sure your forms are complete and that each entry is labeled and received. Some folks may have already downloaded forms and received an exhibitor number via mail, e-mail, or FAX (603-284-7216); those folks can just go to the individual departments. No handbook or computer? No problem. Everything you need to enter item will be available in the Hodge Building.

After you have made your entries, walk over to the midway for Friday Night rides and fair food. No admission is charged on Friday night and you can ride the rides from 4-9 pm with a ride bracelet which can be purchased from Gillette Shows in the midway for $20. Friday night the exhibit halls and the animal barns will be closed to the public. There are no events going on Friday night—just rides, food, and fun!

All items in the Exhibit Halls will be judged between 8 PM Friday night and 9 AM Saturday morning when the exhibit halls open to the public. All entries must stay on display until Monday, October 12 at 5 PM. Pick-up of exhibits is Monday from 5-6:30 PM. Please note vehicles will not be allowed on the fairgrounds until 6 PM on Monday.

Make sure to bring a camera and take lots of photos for the Annual Sandwich Fair Photo Contest (A personal request from me, Diane Johnson : Please don’t upload and try to send your photos to all your friends from the fairgrounds during the Fair. All the cellphone use overloads the cell towers and cell service becomes very slow or impossible for everyone. For those of us who us who depend on wireless service, or for people needing to make an emergency phone call on a cellphone, this can be an issue.) Have fun at the Fair!

Please note that dogs/pets are not allowed on the Fairgrounds so please don’t bring them and don’t lock them up in the car. Properly marked/documented Service Dogs/animals are allowed.

The official opening of the Sandwich Fair will be at 8 AM on Saturday, October 10. The fair committee invites people to gather at the flagpole just inside the gate at the top of the Squam Lake Road Parking lot for an opening ceremony. On Saturday, October 10th gates are open from 8 AM until dusk, Sunday, October 11th, 8 AM until dusk and Monday 8am until 5 PM. A ride special is available in the midway on Saturday from 9-2 when you can purchase a bracelet which allows the wearer unlimited rides for $20. Please remember that we are now in the fall season and that temperatures fluctuate quite a bit from hour to hour. Wear layers and plan ahead for a lot of fun. Admission is $10 for adults (13 and over), 8-12 year olds are $3, 7 and under are free. On Monday only seniors 60 and older are $4.

There will be some exciting new events on Monday, October 12, at The Sandwich Fair this year. The 1st Annual Pickup Truck Pull will run all day in the tractor pull area. Registration beings at 9:00 am and the pull starts at 10 am; this event is sponsored by Maple Ridge Septic.

After several years of women competing in Women’s Skillet Toss, the men have stepped up and have started their own event called Gentlemen’s Keg Toss. This event will take place directly after the ever popular Women’s Skillet Toss and should be every bit as enjoyable; this event is sponsored by Galaxy Gym. The 1st Annual Lego Competition will be held in Smith Hall this year.

Each day at the Sandwich Fair there will be something new and different. Live animal demonstrations and shows take place all three days of the Fair. Enjoy continuous entertainment on the stage all three days which you can comfortably watch from a brand new set of bleachers installed this summer. There is a wide variety of music and acts being performed. A magician, jesters, and sword swallowers are just a few to mention. Many great musical groups will entertain as well. The Peach Eaters, who are an Allman Brother Tribute Band, are back for a second year on Saturday. Sunday The Bel Airs and The Don Campbell Bank will take center stage. Annie and the Orphans will rock the stage Monday. As always the Fair is fortunate to have Art Harriman back as Master of Ceremonies on the stage through the Fair. Eyes on Owls will be doing two live demonstrations on Monday.

Here are some events you won’t want to miss: Woodmen’s Day – FFA Sunday; 4H Day on Monday – All types of 4H exhibits including 4H Dog Show; Animals Shows daily; Grand Street Parade 1:00 PM Sunday (Get to town early; many great bands and floats have entered this year); Antique Auto Show and Parade (Saturday 9 am to 1 pm – parade starts at one); Horsing Around show will perform 4 shows on Saturday; Baked Good Auction 3:45 on Monday; Military Appreciation Day Monday – all military with proper ID get in free; Fiber Art Tent – all three days; Crafts building and Farmers’ Market; Traveling Barn Yard; All the food you could want; rides and games galore; Kid's Scavenger Hunt; Building Exhibits – etc.

The Fair is encouraging everyone to pick up a fair premium book or go online to learn more about all the contests you can enter. You still have time take some photos, paint a picture, harvest some vegetables, start working on recipes, put up some preserves, finish or start and finish a crafting project …. so that you can exhibit and possible win a ribbon and/or prize at the Fair. Office hours are Tuesday and Thursday 9am - 2:30 pm (and sometimes other days as well). The 2015 Sandwich Fair will be Columbus Day Weekend, October 10, 11, 12.Information and forms for the Sandwich Fair can be found on line at www.thesandwichfair.com. Exhibitor Handbooks, brochures and posters are available in the fair office. 284-7062

The Sandwich Fair (celebrating its 105th Anniversary) is just a few weeks away. The Sandwich Fair Association has several new events like the Gentlemen's Keg Toss and the Pick-up Truck Pull. The Fair is encouraging everyone to pick up a fair premium book or go online to learn more about all the contests you can enter.

You still have time take some photos, paint a picture, harvest some vegetables, start working on recipes, put up some preserves, finish or start and finisha crafting project, so that you can exhibit and possible win a ribbon and/or prize at the Fair. Office hours are Tuesday and Thursday 9am - 2:30 pm (and sometimes other days as well). The 2015 Sandwich Fair will be Columbus Day Weekend, October 10, 11, 12. Exhibitor Handbooks, brochures and posters are available in the fair office. 284-7062Sandwich Fair 3-Day TicketsSandwich Fair 3-Day advance sale tickets are available until September 30. They may be purchased at the North Sandwich Store, the Sandwich Fair Office, Meredith Village Savings Banks in Center Harbor and Meredith and the Bank of NH in Moultonborough. The fair is only offering adult 3 day advance purchase. Youth advanced passes are no longer available. Pricing is same as last year:$20.00 for 3 days (savings of $10.00.)

Singers! Actors! Comedians! Advice To The Players presents the 4th Annual New Hampshire Shakespeare Reality Competition: SHAKESPEARIAN IDOL ~ Saturday, October 24, at 7 PM at The Barnstormers Theatre, Tamworth, NH. Take to the stage and make your own Shakespearian Scene-and-Song Pairing!! What might Hamlet sing to Yorick’s skull - “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction”? Perhaps Romeo from the balcony will sing “Young Girl, Get Out of My Mind” We know King Lear himself faces “Stormy Weather” on the heath.Call now for your Performance Slots!!! 603-284-6808. George Cleveland will MC the evening - Prizes awarded! Contestants will be judged by the audience and a panel of NH Arts notables . No audition necessary - Karaoke-style sound - Free entry and refreshments to performers. Limited contestant slots! For more information and to sign up for this benefit extravaganza email shakespearianidol@advicetotheplayers.org or call Patty Heard @ 603-284-6808.

Contra Dance, an exciting new play by Sandwich resident Caroline Nesbitt, is in rehearsal for its debut at The Barnstormers Theatre. As a world premiere, the show will run for four performances only, Thursday September 3 – Saturday September 5 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday September 6 at 2:00 p.m.Contra Dance is a very human look at the changes of time, culture, loss, and love on a landscape, its people, and the way we ultimately define Home. Treated with equal parts humor and poignancy, the characters are salty, tough, and as recognizable as the Granite state itself. The changes are known to us all – rooted in New Hampshire, but universal in scope. The cast is a familiar one to theatre-goers in our region: Robert Bates, Jean Brown, Dale Place, Richard Moses, Caroline Nesbitt, Angela Hope Smith, Vivian Nesbitt (who came all the way from Albuquerque to participate in this production), and newcomer Versee Damien all combine their considerable talents to create a powerful storytelling ensemble in a show that tells an honest and uplifting story of Us. Tickets for Contra Dance are $25.00 can be ordered online at http://contradanceworldpremiere.bpt.me, reserved by calling the Contra Dance ticket hotline at 677-2739, or you can buy them at the door. Group and senior rates are available upon request. Seating is general admission, but please let us know if you have special needs or favorite seats and we will happily accommodate them! Note: due to adult language and themes, Contra Dance is not family entertainment. Please use discretion when bringing children.

Patricia Ladd Carega Gallery, The Sandwich Home Industries, and Advice to the Players will be open after hours to welcome visitors participating in the last Gallery Walk of the season. Refreshments will be served at each venue and The Corner House Inn awaits at the end of the walk with a 15 % dining discount for those who have visited each business. Also, the walls at the Corner House show paintings from Surroundings Art Gallery, so a visit for dinner provides an added bonus of more art to view.

Patricia Carega Gallery will begin the walk early at 4:00 p.m. with a talk by installation artist Delanie Jenkins. The exhibit, Snow Fence, was inspired by summer trips to Wyoming during the past eight years. Jenkins became captivated by the form and shapes of the ever present snow fences that stretch across the western landscape. Her traveling site sculpture is transformed by material to play with illusion and perception.

Inside the gallery Ashley Bullard’s exhibit of new work, Look to the Laundry, explodes with motion and color. The clothesline is the subject that connects each painting in this series while it also connects us universally.

The Sandwich Home Industries exhibits a wide variety of traditional and contemporary craft in many media, all made by juried members of the League of NH Craftsmen. Pottery, glass, prints, wood, jewelry, metal, stone and basketry are all on view. The Industries are dedicated to education. Workshops, demonstrations and classes are offered throughout the summer. For a list of all the events and workshops going on at the Sandwich Home Industries, pick up a brochure at any of our galleries or visit www.nhcrafts.org/center-sandwich.

Spring Storm, by Celia Judge 2007

At the new Arts Center at 12 Main the theatre company Advice To The Players is presenting an exhibition entitled: Line! an actor draws the theatre (1968-2015) by John Devaney, running July 30 - September 7.John Devaney's statement about this exhibition: "Much of my painting is about the gesture and movement of figures - human, animal, mythical, and things. The theatre is a wonderful resource for this: all through the rehearsal process, actors explore the essence of their characters through voice and body. They go through the same movements again and again. And, in their midst, I get to explore with them : the coming together of an actor with her character." John Devaney's paintings can be seen at www.johndevaney.com.

In addition to fine dining, the Corner House features live music in their pub each Friday evening. On Friday Aug. 14 Julia Velie performs a wide range of classic soft rock and pop tunes in the pub from 6:30 – 9:30 pm. For the summer schedule and CHI events visit www.cornerhouseinn.com.

Visit all three Gallery Walk locations between 5 and 7 PM and receive a 15% dining discount at the Corner House Inn! Another great reason to spend the evening in Center Sandwich on Friday Aug. 14!

Poor Malvolio . . . he is tricked into wearing yellow cross-gartered stockings, exactly the kind his mistress dislikes, thinking that she loves them, and him, all because of a letter he believes she has written to him, but which was actually written by a fellow servant with the intention of making a fool of him. And that is not even the worst that befalls poor Malvolio in this engrossing tale of mistaken identity and mistaken love.

You have several more chances to see Advice To the Players' excellent production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Aug 6 - 9 at the Sandwich Fairgrounds Stage. For tickets and info visit advicetotheplayers.org or call 284-7115.

Rain or shine, Thursday, August 6, from 10 am to 4:30 pm, on the Green in Center Sandwich, enjoy what isnow the largest educational art and craft festival of its kind in the Lakes Region. There are over 60 artists represented and most will be there to talk to you about their work and demonstrate or explain how they do what they do and why.AOG is separated into six sections; first are the original 20 artist’s booths around the green. The 21st booth is the AOG Craft Tent, where there are fiber arts demonstrations plus John Worthington demonstrating chair canning and Paula Kuehn completing an oil painting during the day. Nearby Judith Orth will demonstrate iconography. New this year is Artisans on the Circle, anchored by the SHI gallery (Sandwich Home Industries).Kathryn Field will be on the SHI porch with portrait paintings and sculptures, then booths for Pamela Hitchcock (jewelry), Robin Dustin (wood turning), Ben Adriance (cabinet maker), and the Siriannis (stained glass and jewelry). At the west end of the green is the Sandwich Woman’s Club luncheon, and at the eastern end is the entrance to the Fine Arts Village on the second town green!In the village is the Fine Arts Gallery, a large tent with 2 dimensional art on 4x8 foot panels, representing the work of 14 artists. Most of them will be in attendance and glad to discuss their work. Adjacent to that tent is the AOG Art and Craft Shop, where you can buy most of the paintings in the gallery plus cards and prints etc. by the same artists.Also in the village are the Artisans in the Village; several Artists’ booths including Pat Anderson and Jean Kennedy (oil), Austine Howard (sketching, watercolor and pen & ink) and new this year…a Watercolor demonstration tent. Several artists, (including Joanne Reynolds and Judy Palfry) have volunteered to paint watercolors during the day…and theywill leave watercolor paint, brushes and paper out for you to try your hand!!!Finally a word about AOG sponsor, Meredith Village Savings Bank. This event costs a good deal of money to run and each and every artisan has donated funds to help defray the event expenses.A major purpose of the event is to raise enough money for the Sandwich Home Industries toprovide children’s art and craft classes all summer at no cost to the child. Due to the generosity of MVSB, that can be done! Please thank the bank representatives at the event… they have made the difference and everyone benefits. Come out and enjoy the dayboth on the Green and throughout the Village of Center Sandwich where Old Home Week events will be in full swing.

Alfred Quimby Fundfor the Town of Sandwich

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